Leyton housing statistics 2026
Leyton was built in one long burst. The railway turned it from a village into a suburb of small terraced houses, its population grew from 4,794 in 1861 to 124,735 in 1911, and six in ten of its homes today date from before 1919. These are the numbers behind that story, from the Edwardian terraces to today's £515,500 median sale price in E10.
Every figure comes from an official source and is dated, so you can see exactly what you are working with before you plan a home renovation in Leyton. The sources are numbered in brackets and listed in full at the end of the page.
How Leyton was built
Leyton changed when the railway arrived. Stations opened at Lea Bridge in 1840 and at Low Leyton and Leytonstone in 1856, and building began in the district nearest to Lea Bridge station. The population rose from 4,794 in 1861 to 10,394 in 1871, and by 1911 it had reached 124,735 [1].
The Victoria County History describes Leyton as mainly a suburb of small houses built between 1870 and 1910, most of them two-storey terraces and villas in yellow brick, set in rows. There was little building between the two wars [1].
Today's figures bear that out. The Valuation Office Agency counts 20,530 homes across Leyton's five census areas, Baker's Arms, Lea Bridge, Leyton North, Leyton East and Leyton South. Of those, 34.0% were built before 1900 and another 28.1% between 1900 and 1918, so 62.1% are older than 1919, more than twice London's 29.0% [2].
The Edwardian share stands out most: 28.1% of homes against 8.2% for London. Only 6.3% went up between the wars, against 22.0% across London, and 16.2% have been built since 2000 [2]. Those two-storey Victorian and Edwardian terraces are the classic shape for a loft conversion in Leyton, which adds a third floor to a house built with two.
How Leyton households live
The 2021 Census counted 18,779 households in Leyton. Almost a third, 30.7%, live in a terraced house, against 21.3% across London, and 35.5% live in a purpose-built flat, against 40.3% [3].
The figure that stands out is the converted flat. Nearly one Leyton household in five, 18.5%, lives in a flat inside a converted house, against 11.1% for London, so many of those small terraces now hold two homes rather than one [3]. In a flat on one floor of an Edwardian terrace, space is tight, and a kitchen renovation in Leyton is usually about fitting more into the same footprint.
Who owns Leyton's homes
Four in ten Leyton households, 40.9%, own their home: 15.8% outright and 25.1% with a mortgage. Across London the figure is 45.2% [4].
Private renting is the largest single tenure, at 36.2% of households against 30.0% for London. Social renting accounts for 20.7%, a little below London's 23.1% [4].
What a home costs in Leyton
The UK House Price Index and the rent figures are only published for whole boroughs, so on this page they cover all of Waltham Forest. The census and Valuation Office figures cover Leyton's five census areas named above, and the local sale prices cover the E10 postcode district.
The average Waltham Forest home cost £532,212 in August 2026, 0.7% more than a year earlier, while London prices fell 2.2% [5]. That puts the borough about 4% below the London average of £554,430 and about 81% above the England average of £293,525 [6].
Twenty years ago the gap with London was far wider. In August 2006 the Waltham Forest average was £219,978, about 80% of London's £274,815. Prices in the borough are now 2.4 times their 2006 level, against 2.0 times for London, and the gap has narrowed from 20.0% below London to 4.0% below. The borough has never passed the London average, but August 2026 is its highest August figure yet [6].
Sale prices in E10
Land Registry recorded 362 sales in the E10 postcode district between October 2025 and September 2026, at a median price of £515,500 [7]. Flats and maisonettes made up 195 of them, at a median of £425,000, and terraced houses 158, at a median of £721,500, a gap of £296,500.
Across Waltham Forest, a flat or maisonette averaged £390,968 in August 2026 and a terraced house £629,993 [5]. First-time buyers paid an average of £478,143, while owners moving home paid £629,080.
In E10, where terraced houses sell almost as often as flats, that gap is the choice many owners face: move up, or stay and add a house extension in Leyton to the house they already have.
What it costs to rent
The average private rent in Waltham Forest was £1,772 a month in September 2026, up 2.4% on a year earlier [5]. A one-bedroom home averaged £1,407 a month, a two-bedroom home £1,732 and a three-bedroom home £2,035.
With 36.2% of Leyton households renting privately, more than across London as a whole, many of the area's flats and terraces are let, and a bathroom renovation in Leyton is often the job landlords take on between tenancies.
Where Leyton homes sit for Council Tax
Leyton's small houses show up clearly in the Council Tax bands. The Valuation Office Agency puts 44.1% of homes in Band B, more than three times London's 13.0%, and another 32.8% in Band C [2].
Only 0.6% of homes are in Band E or above, against 30.7% across London, and the share in Bands F to H rounds to zero [2].
The rules on your street
Waltham Forest lists 15 conservation areas, including Leyton Town Centre and Bakers Arms. The council says you'll likely need planning permission to make external changes to properties within them [8].
Most of the borough's conservation areas also have Article 4 directions, which restrict permitted development rights, but neither Leyton Town Centre nor Bakers Arms is among the nine that do [8]. One direction does cover every Leyton street: across the whole borough, turning a house into a small house in multiple occupation needs planning permission [9].
Waltham Forest says that once an application has been validated, the decision will be made within eight weeks [10]. Householder applications, such as extensions, garages and fences, are among those that must be decided by officers rather than the planning committee [11]. Our builders in Leyton check what applies to your address before any work begins.
Leyton housing statistics at a glance
- Average house price, Waltham Forest, August 2026: £532,212 (London £554,430) [5] [6]
- Change on a year earlier: +0.7% (London -2.2%) [5] [6]
- Median sale price in E10, October 2025 to September 2026: £515,500 [7]
- Median terraced house in E10: £721,500 [7]
- Average private rent, Waltham Forest, September 2026: £1,772 a month [5]
- Homes built before 1919: 62.1% (London 29.0%) [2]
- Households living in a converted flat: 18.5% (London 11.1%) [3]
- Households renting privately: 36.2% (London 30.0%) [4]
- Homes in Council Tax Band B: 44.1% (London 13.0%) [2]
- Conservation areas in Waltham Forest: 15 [8]
Frequently asked questions
References
- British History Online, Leyton: Introduction. Victoria County History of Essex, volume 6.
- Valuation Office Agency, Council Tax: stock of properties 2026. Table CTSOP4.1, properties by build period and Council Tax band at 31 March 2026, Leyton census areas and London.
- ONS, Census 2021 table TS044: Accommodation type. Households by type of home, Leyton census areas and London.
- ONS, Census 2021 table TS054: Tenure. Households by tenure, Leyton census areas and London.
- ONS, Housing prices in Waltham Forest. UK House Price Index for August 2026 and Price Index of Private Rents for September 2026, published 21 October 2026.
- HM Land Registry, UK House Price Index. Average prices for Waltham Forest, London and England, August 2006 to August 2026.
- HM Land Registry, Price Paid Data. Sales in the E10 postcode district, October 2025 to September 2026.
- Waltham Forest Council, Conservation areas and listed buildings. Accessed 29 October 2026.
- Waltham Forest Council, Local Article 4 directions. Accessed 29 October 2026.
- Waltham Forest Council, Residential Alterations and Retrofit SPD: Navigating the planning process. Accessed 29 October 2026.
- Waltham Forest Council, How we decide on planning applications. Accessed 29 October 2026.
Thinking of improving rather than moving?
Tell us about your Leyton home and what you want to change, from a converted flat to an Edwardian terrace. We'll give you a free estimate, then up to three vetted builders quote against the same specification.